Containers



May 1, 1962 L. F. HUMPHREY CONTAINERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 16, 1960 YMm & m 2 M K mm m May 1, 1962 L. F. HUMPHREY 3,032,176

CONTAINERS Filed Feb. 16, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I nventor 3 1 i lssuz l-Twvx Hump/mar 6 w wm A ttorneys United States PatentO 3,032,176 CONTAINERS Leslie Frank Humphrey, Maidstone, England, assignor to Reed Corrugated Cases Limited, London, England, a British company Filed Feb. 16, 1960, Ser. No. 8,981 4 Claims. (Cl. 296-4) This invention is concerned with improvements in or relating to containers and more particularly to containers suitable for the transporting of garments, dresses, suits and other articles.

It is very desirable that dresses, and also certain other garments, when being transported between a manufac turer and a shop, should reach their destination as nearly as possible in an uncreased condition and for this purpose, it is desirable that dresses and similar garments should be hung from hangers even when packed for bulk transport or delivery.

It will be apparent that any containers for this purpose should be as cheap and light as possible whilst at the same time being strong enough to withstand normal transporting.

It is an object of the invention to provide a container suitable for use in transporting dresses and like garments which complies with the above requirements.

According to the invention there is provided a container for dresses and like garments of cardboard, corrugated board or like material in which the top thereof is of gable shape, means for suspending clothes hangers being suspended within the container from the ridge of said gable top and extending across the container substantially parallel to the said ridge.

I have found that a container or box according to this invention is light since it is made of a light weight material and due to the garments being suspended from suspension means which are carried by the ridge of the gable top, the weight of the garments is transferred to the sides of the container, thus enabling a sufliciently strong container to be made of such material. An additional advantage of the gable shaped top of the container resides in the fact that it is impossible to stand the container on its gabled end with the result that when loading such containers into a lorry or railway truck, the natural tendency will be to place the container gable end uppermost with the result that the garments will remain in their hanging condition.

Containers according to this invention will generally be rectangular, two opposite walls constituting the back and front being scored or bent to form the opposite sides of the gable roof portions which in the assembled container form the ends of the gabled top.

I prefer to provide means integral with or secured to the container which serve when the container is loaded with garments on hangers to prevent or restrain the hangers from sliding freely along the suspension means. Such means may comprise tabs or portions on the said side walls forming the gable ends which are adapted to be folded or tucked into the container so as to engage or bear onto clothes hangers on said suspension means. If desired, further tabs may be provided on said gable end forming side walls which serve to provide support for one of the roof portions, said further tabs being formed on the opposite side of said gable ends from said first mentioned tabs.

The suspension means may be in the form of a cardboard or corrugated board rod suspended from the ridge of the gable top and reinforced or stiffened if desired. I prefer, however, to use a metal, plastic or wooden suspension rod for hangers for the garments. A convenient form of such suspension rod is an open rectangular frame g, 3,032,176 Patented May 1, 1962 of a length slightly less than the internal length of the ridge of the gable top, one long side of said frame serving to carry the hangers whilst the other serves for connection to one of the sides of the gable roof or top for instance by means of foldable tabs formed thereon. With such a suspension means it is preferred to provide a bracing rod across the said frame, a slot or cutout being provided in the said side of the top through which the said bracing rod can extend into the container.

The said front forming wall of the container is hingedly connected to one side wall and serves as a door through which garments on hangers can be inserted into the container and supported from the suspension means with the hangers extending parallel to the gable ends. The side of the gable top integral with this front wall preferably also has an extension which passes over the ridge of the gable top and down the other side to be secured thereon either by staples, a slot and tab connection or by adhesive tape.

Containers according to this invention may be made froma number of separate parts secured together but it is preferred to form them from a single integral blan cut and scored to the appropriate shape.

In order that the invention may be well understood one preferred embodiment thereof will now be described in further detail by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 shows a plan view of a blank for a container according to the invention,

FIGURE 2 is a side view of suspension means,

FIGURE 3 shows a front perspective view of an assembled container ready for garments to be hung therein, and

FIGURE 4 is a side elevation of FIGURE 3 showing the container closed.

A container for hanging garments according to this invention is made from a single blank of double faced corrugated board. This blank, which is of generally rectangular shape, is provided with three parallel fold lines 1 which divide the blank into four wall portions, namely a side wall 2, a back wall 3, a side wall 4 and a front wall 5, these walls being integrally connected together in the order mentioned.

Each of these four walls has a bottom forming flap 6 foldably connected thereto, such flaps being overlapped with one another in known manner and secured by staples or adhesive tape to form a fiat bottom for the container.

The edge of the side wall 2 not connected to the back wall3 is provided with a short flange 7 along its length which in the erected container serves as an abutment against which the free edge of the front wall or door 5 can rest and be secured by staples or adhesive tape.

The said front wall 5 is preferably cut into two parts, the bottom part 8 being securely stapled to the said flange whilst the upper part serves as a door through which garments can be inserted into the assembled container.

Cuts 10 are formed along the lines of junction of the four walls from the top thereof and down to a level which in the assembled container represents the junction of the walls with the bottom of a gable shaped roof or top to be formed.

The front wall and back wall each provide one side of the gable roof, the front wall having a foldable extension 11 which will extend over the ridge 12 of the gable and partially down the other side to be secured thereto by adhesive tape when the container is closed.

The back wall has an extension 16 to form a side of the gable which extension at its upper edge 12 defines the ridge of the gable and has foldable tabs 13 extending therefrom which serve to carry suspension means 14 for clothes hangers. This suspension means comprises a rectangular frame of metal of a length slightly less than the inside distance between the side walls 2, 4. One side 15 of said frame is held against the ridge defining edge 12 of the side 16 of the gable top by folding said tabs 13 around it and securing them by staples to the inside of said side 16 of the gable top (as shown by dotted lines in 'FIG. 1). The other side 17 of said frame will then, in theassembled container, hang down inside as a supporting rail for clothes hangers. A bracing rod 18 extends between the two sides of the frame 14 and passes between the two adjacent tabs 13 holding the frame in position.

The two side walls 2, 4 of the container are each provided with two 'fold lines 19 which extend from the junction of the side walls with the gable top to form in each side wall a gable end 20 in the form of a right angled triangle the apex of the right angle defining the line of the ridge of the gable top. The remainder of the two side walls above said triangle forming fold lines is slit from the top down to the apex of the right angle to form on each side wall two rear flap portions 21 and two front flap portions 221: and 22b. The rear flap portions 21 of *each side Wall between it and the back wall 3 are folded over onto themselves about fold line 23 to form supporting flaps which are folded inwardly of the container and interlocked with each other (see FIGURE 3) and the side '16 of the gable top formed rom the back wall 3 then rests against flaps 21 when the container is assembled. The line along which these portions are doubled over is so disposed that the upper edge of these flaps will be just clear of and below the ridge 12 of the gable top so as to clear the suspension means 14.

The front flap portions are each again provided with a fold line 24 which divides each flap portion into a part 22a which in the assembled container will lie across and beneath the side 11 of the gable top formed from the front wall 5, and a second part 22b which is so shaped as to be able to pass between the 'saidsup'porting rail 17 and the side 15 of frame 14. These second parts 22b will thus, when the container is assembled and filled, tend to bear down on the supporting rail 17 and will serve to prevent or at least restrain, clothes hangers from slidingalong the supporting rail.

In use the blank will be assembled with the front Wall or door portion open and the supporting rail 14 hanging from the ridge 12 of the gable top and parallel thereto (see FIGURE 3). Garments on any suitable hangers are hung from the supporting rail 17 and when a desired number have been packed the front flap portions 22a 2211 are folded into position over the then open front-side 11 of the gable top the said second parts 22b of these front flap portions being tucked in between the supporting rail 17 and the side 15 of frame 14. The door portion 5 is then closed and the side 11 of the gable top integral therewith is folded over the ridge of theroof. The door and the extension of the front side of the roof are then securedby adhesive tape.

Due to the gable construction of the top ofthe container along the ridge 12 of which the supporting rail is carried the weight 'of the garments is transmitted to the side walls 2, 4 with the result that no special reinforcement of the corrugated board is needed to Withstand the weight of the garments. Containers according to this invention are light and can easily be returned in either blank or assembled condition for 're-use if desired. In general, the gable top will encourage loaders of transport to stand the containers upright, so that the garments are less likely to be creased in transit.

It will be understood that only one preferred embodiment of the invention by way of example, has been described above and that variations and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention. Thus, for example, containers according to this invention may be of a height equivalent to a full length ladies dress or they may be of less height where it is desired to suspend dresses in a looped fashion over hangers.

' Iclaim:

1. A container, for dresses or the like, folded from a sheet of sheet material, the top thereof being of gable shape and having a ridge, elongated rigid means for suspending clothes hangers, said rigid means being suspended within said container from the ridge of said gable top and extending across the interior of the container substantially parallel to said ridge, and restraining means fixed to said container and engageable with hangers on said elongated means for restraining said hangers from free sliding movement along said elongated means, said elongated rigid means comprising a rectangular frame one longer side of which serves to receive hangers while the other longer side is suspended from the ridge of said gable by folded tabs secured to one of the sides of the gable top and engaging substantially the whole length of said other longer side.

2. A container as defined in claim 1 in which said rectangular frame is provided with a bracing rod extending thereacross between its ends, said folded tabs being spaced apart to define a slot therebetween accommodating said bracing rod.

'3. A'container as defined in claim 1 wherein said restraining means comprise tabs hingedly connected to those side walls of the container which constitute the ends of the gable top and which tabs bear frictionally on hangers on said elongated means.

4. A container as defined in claim 1 in which one side of said gable constitutes an upper panel on the front Wall of said container and has an extension passing over the ridge of the gable top and secured to the other side thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,082,007 Joseph June 1, 1937 2,561,053 Fallert July 17, 1951 2,752,032 Fish June 26, 1956 2,873,851 'Abramson Feb. 17, 1959 2,883,042 Richer Apr. 21, 1959 3,003,616 Field Oct. 10, 1961 

